BOOK COUPLES COUNTDOWN | Day 1: Beauty & the Beast
Welcome to Day 1 of Book Couples Countdown! My first pick is Beauty and the Beast. I decided to make them the Day 1 pair because I’ve loved them since childhood, and their relationship has therefore remained somewhat simplistic to me.
Art by MinaLima. This is a page from Harper Design’s 2017 edition of Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve’s original story.
But last year I finally read Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve’s original version (La Belle et la Bête, which was translated to English by J.R. Planché), and it only furthered my love for them!
Art by Walter Crane. This illustration acts as the cover for Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont’s version.
The faith Beauty has in the Beast despite his appearance is, of course, the very essence of this story. It’s something I never seem to tire of, and I know I’m not the only one, as the tale has been told and retold for centuries. The story as we know it was first written by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve in 1740. She is believed to have been inspired by the Greek myth of Cupid and Psyche, and that influence came full circle in 1956, when C.S. Lewis published Till We Have Faces. This, a retelling of the Cupid and Psyche myth, is often thought to be a Beauty and the Beast story. It’s possible that Lewis was influenced by the evolution of the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale as an extension, of sorts, of the original myth. In between Villeneuve and Lewis, countless retellings of the fairy tale have been put out into the world. Notably, Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont (whom many mistakingly believe to be the original author) and Andrew Lang (a master of fairy tales) have versions to their names. A tale as old as time? Almost!
I vividly remember pausing the VHS and staring, with awe, at this stained-glass image of them.
Having grown up watching the Disney version, this story still feels like the ultimate romance to me. As a child, it really impressed upon me the idea that true love, whether romantic or otherwise, reaches far beyond appearances. I still love this pair for that lesson, which they continue to bring to little ones everywhere. It’s so beautiful!
From 1740 to 2017. Every version makes my heart sing!
The quiet curiosity, kindness, and love of simplicity they share has always endeared me to them. They argue a bit, which is something I tend to enjoy in romances, but they always come around to small smiles. I sometimes fall in and out of obsession with love stories as time goes on, but I think I’ll forever adore these two.
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Did you have a fairy-tale romance you admired as a child? Let’s chat in the comments!
